Peter D'Souza, MD

Clinical Assistant Professor, Emergency Medicine

Bio

Bio

Dr. D'Souza's clinical practice is in Emergency Medicine at Stanford Hospital. He has a strong interest in Emergency Medical Services and pre-hospital care. He currently serves as Medical Director for Stanford Life Flight. He previously served as course director for the Stanford EMT Training Program. His research interests include treatment of neurological emergencies and variability in trauma care.

Research & Scholarship

Clinical Trials

Established Status Epilepticus Treatment TrialRecruiting

The primary objective is to determine the most effective and/or the least effective
treatment of benzodiazepine-refractory status epilepticus (SE) among patients older than 2
years. There are three active treatment arms being compared: fosphenytoin
(FOS),levetiracetam (LEV), and valproic acid (VPA).
The second objective is comparison of three drugs with respect to secondary outcomes.
The final objective is to ensure that the trial is informative for treatment of established
SE in children by describing the effectiveness, safety, and rate of adverse reactions of
these drugs in children.

Progesterone for the Treatment of Traumatic Brain Injury IIINot Recruiting

The ProTECT study will determine if intravenous (IV) progesterone (started within 4 hours of
injury and given for a total of 96 hours), is more effective than placebo for treating
victims of moderate to severe acute traumatic brain injury.

Stanford is currently not accepting patients for this trial.For more information, please contact Rosen Mann, (650) 721 - 2645.

Abstract

Due to the scarcity of specialized resources for pediatric trauma, "regionalization," or a system designed to get "the right child, to the right place, at the right time," is vital to quality pediatric trauma care. In Northern California, four pediatric trauma centers serve 3.9 million children within a geographically diverse area of 113,630 square miles. A significant proportion of children with trauma is initially triaged to nontrauma hospitals and may require subsequent transfer to a specialty center. Trauma transfer patterns to a pediatric trauma center may provide insight into regional primary triage practices. Transfers from hospitals in close proximity to pediatric trauma centers might suggest that some children could have avoided transfer with minimal additional transport time. While pediatric trauma centers are scarce and serve as regional resources, transfers from beyond the regular catchment area of a trauma center could be an indication of clinical need.The objective of this study was to gain an understanding of patterns of pediatric trauma transfer to all pediatric trauma centers within the region as a first step in assessing the efficacy and efficiency of trauma triage. The authors examined three groups of transfer patients: transfers from within the same county as the pediatric trauma center (near transfers), transfers from counties adjacent to the pediatric trauma center (catchment transfers), and transfers from more distant counties (far transfers). The hypothesis was that catchment transfers would form the bulk of transfers, near transfers would compose < 10% of total transfers, and far transfers would be younger and more severely injured than catchment transfers.This was a retrospective analysis of institutional trauma registry data of children < 18 years from all pediatric trauma centers in Northern California from 2001 through 2009. Transfers were characterized by the location of the transfer hospital relative to the location of the pediatric trauma center. Characteristics associated with near transfer compared to primary triage to a pediatric trauma center were identified, as well as characteristics associated with far transfer compared to catchment transfer.A total of 2,852 of 11,952 (23.9%) pediatric trauma patients were transfers. Near transfers comprised 24.5% of cases, catchment transfers were 37.4%, and far transfers were 38.2%. After controlling for demographic, clinical, and geographic factors, younger age, higher Injury Severity Score (ISS), public versus private insurance, and an injury mechanism of "fall" were associated with near transfer rather than direct triage. Older age, higher ISS, and mechanism of "motor vehicle crash" were associated with far rather than catchment transfer.This analysis of patterns of transfer to all pediatric trauma centers within Northern California gives the most comprehensive population view of pediatric trauma triage to date, to the authors' knowledge. Trauma transfers comprise an important minority of patients cared for at pediatric trauma centers. The number of near transfers documented indicates the potential to improve the primary triage process of patients to pediatric trauma centers. The frequency of far transfers substantiates the well-known shortage of pediatric trauma expertise. Development of regionwide standardized transfer protocols and agreements between hospitals, as well as standardized monitoring of the process and outcomes, could increase efficiency of care.

Abstract

The American Heart Association (AHA) Advanced Cardiovascular Life Support (ACLS) course is taught worldwide. The ACLS course is designed for consistency, regardless of location; to our knowledge, no previous study has compared the cognitive performance of international ACLS students to those in the United States (US).As international health educational initiatives continue to expand, an assessment of their efficacy is essential. This study assesses the AHA ACLS curriculum in an international setting by comparing performance of a cohort of US and Indian paramedic students.First-year paramedic students at the Emergency Management and Research Institute, Hyderabad, India, and a cohort of first-year paramedic students from the United States comprised the study population. All study participants had successfully completed the standard 2-day ACLS course, taught in English. Each student was given a 40-question standardized AHA multiple-choice examination. Examination performance was calculated and compared for statistical significance.There were 117 Indian paramedic students and 43 US paramedic students enrolled in the study. The average score was 86% (± 11%) for the Indian students and 87% (± 6%) for the US students. The difference between the average examination scores was not statistically significant in an independent means t-test (p=0.508) and a Wilcoxon test (p=0.242).Indian paramedic students demonstrated excellent ACLS cognitive comprehension and performed at a level equivalent to their US counterparts on an AHA ACLS written examination. Based on the study results, the AHA ACLS course proved effective in an international setting despite being taught in a non-native language.

Abstract

since California lacks a statewide trauma system, there are no uniform interfacility pediatric trauma transfer guidelines across local emergency medical services (EMS) agencies in California. This may result in delays in obtaining optimal care for injured children.this study sought to understand patterns of pediatric trauma patient transfers to the study trauma center as a first step in assessing the quality and efficiency of pediatric transfer within the current trauma system model. Outcome measures included clinical and demographic characteristics, distances traveled, and centers bypassed. The hypothesis was that transferred patients would be more severely injured than directly admitted patients, primary catchment transfers would be few, and out-of-catchment transfers would come from hospitals in close geographic proximity to the study center.this was a retrospective observational analysis of trauma patients ? 18 years of age in the institutional trauma database (2000-2007). All patients with a trauma International Classification of Diseases, 9th revision (ICD-9) code and trauma mechanism who were identified as a trauma patient by EMS or emergency physicians were recorded in the trauma database, including those patients who were discharged home. Trauma patients brought directly to the emergency department (ED) and patients transferred from other facilities to the center were compared. A geographic information system (GIS) was used to calculate the straight-line distances from the referring hospitals to the study center and to all closer centers potentially capable of accepting interfacility pediatric trauma transfers.of 2,798 total subjects, 16.2% were transferred from other facilities within California; 69.8% of transfers were from the catchment area, with 23.0% transferred from facilities ? 10 miles from the center. This transfer pattern was positively associated with private insurance (risk ratio [RR] = 2.05; p < 0.001) and negatively associated with age 15-18 years (RR = 0.23; p = 0.01) and Injury Severity Score (ISS)?> 18 (RR = 0.26; p < 0.01). The out-of-catchment transfers accounted for 30.2% of the patients, and 75.9% of these noncatchment transfers were in closer proximity to another facility potentially capable of accepting pediatric interfacility transfers. The overall median straight-line distance from noncatchment referring hospitals to the study center was 61.2 miles (IQR = 19.0-136.4), compared to 33.6 miles (IQR = 13.9-61.5) to the closest center. Transfer patients were more severely injured than directly admitted patients (p < 0.001). Out-of-catchment transfers were older than catchment patients (p < 0.001); ISS > 18 (RR = 2.06; p < 0.001) and age 15-18 (RR = 1.28; p < 0.001) were predictive of out-of-catchment patients bypassing other pediatric-capable centers. Finally, 23.7% of pediatric trauma transfer requests to the study institution were denied due to lack of bed capacity.from the perspective an adult Level I trauma center with a certified pediatric intensive care unit (PICU), delays in definitive pediatric trauma care appear to be present secondary to initial transport to nontrauma community hospitals within close proximity of a trauma hospital, long transfer distances to accepting facilities, and lack of capacity at the study center. Given the absence of uniform trauma triage and transfer guidelines across state EMS systems, there appears to be a role for quality monitoring and improvement of the current interfacility pediatric trauma transfer system, including defined triage, transfer, and data collection protocols.

Abstract

Data on the efficacy of the simulation and multimedia teaching modalities is limited, particularly in developing nations. This study evaluates the effectiveness of simulator and multimedia educational tools in India.Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS) certified paramedic students in India were randomized to either Simulation, Multimedia, or Reading for a 3-h ACLS refresher course. Simulation students received a lecture and 10 simulator cases. The Multimedia group viewed the American Heart Association (AHA) ACLS video and played a computer game. The Reading group independently read with an instructor present. Students were tested prior to (pre-test), immediately after (post-test), and 3 weeks after (short-term retention test), their intervention. During each testing stage subjects completed a cognitive, multiple-choice test and two cardiac arrest scenarios. Changes in exam performance were analyzed for significance. A survey was conducted asking students' perceptions of their assigned modality.One hundred and seventeen students were randomized to Simulation (n=39), Multimedia (n=38), and Reading (n=40). Simulation demonstrated greater improvement managing cardiac arrest scenarios compared to both Multimedia and Reading on the post-test (9% versus 5% and 2%, respectively, p<0.05) and Reading on the short-term retention test (6% versus -1%, p<0.05). Multimedia showed significant improvement on cognitive, short-term retention testing compared to Simulation and Reading (5% versus 0% and 0%, respectively, p<0.05). On the survey, 95% of Simulation and 84% of Multimedia indicated they enjoyed their modality.Simulation and multimedia educational tools were effective and may provide significant additive benefit compared to reading alone. Indian students enjoyed learning via these modalities.